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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23918842">Unlikely Roommates</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marquise_Du_Sang/pseuds/Marquise'>Marquise (Marquise_Du_Sang)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Borderlands (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Friendship, Gen, Post-Borderlands 2, Post-Tales from the Borderlands, Roommates, and they were ROOMMATES, oh my god they were roommates</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-02 20:34:13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,190</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23918842</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marquise_Du_Sang/pseuds/Marquise</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In the aftermath of Jack dying and Helios crashing, Timothy Lawrence finds himself without a job and without a home. Stranded on Pandora, he roams from town to town in search of a place to belong... and then he happens to find a roommate.</p><p>An eccentric one.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Timothy Lawrence &amp; Shade (Borderlands)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Unlikely Roommates</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was a piece I did for the Borderlands zine on tumblr! May eventually turn this into a series of oneshots.</p><p>Enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Surviving was at least one thing Timothy knew how to do well. He’d had to survive countless missions on Elpis, being thrown around on jump pads, being shot out a cannon, murderous robots and aliens and indigenous creatures and scavs. So really, surviving on Pandora should be a cake-walk. They had all of those things, except the scavs were called bandits and the kraggons were switched with skags and didn’t explode into tinier skags when you blew one up. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even the fact that he was being hunted down by a corporation wasn’t any different. Same crap, different scenarios.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>It didn’t stop him from being lonely, though. He couldn’t count on any of these bandits, because they were the first to try and stab him in the back. So, he’d had to live a nomadic life, going from town to town disguised to keep people from recognizing him, leaving after only a few days to prevent any mishaps.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Now he was in the town of Prosperity Junction, wearing goggles and a half mask to keep his face hidden, trudging along and trying to blend in. His hair was windswept from the flat and dusty plains of Pandora, the sun having roasted his hair a copper-brown. At least he was reclaiming himself a piece at a time, he mused as he managed to go undetected by the citizens of the town.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Having decided that the inn was too rich for his blood, Timothy glanced about the town before jumping the gate to a seemingly abandoned building, its lights dimmed. He assessed the outside of the building before deeming it worthy of spending at least a night or two. He was too tired to check the building out for more, though he eyed some of the weird statues and taxidermied animals that littered the place.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He settled in to the nearest secluded room, taking his goggles and mask off with a relieved sigh. They had started to get slick with sweat and made breathing almost unbearable. There wasn’t a lot of light to go by, so he settled against the nearest wall, trying to stay away from the shadowy silhouettes of statues along the other walls. Timothy kept his rucksack still slung around him, wanting to be careful with what little things he still had.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Home sweet home,” he murmured aloud at the room and its dusty collection of taxidermy, before sliding his eyes closed and falling asleep.</span>
</p><hr/><p>
  <span>Timothy startled awake with the eerie feeling of being watched. All he registered before he butted heads with something was a maddening grin and a pair of sunglasses. He let out a cry and pressed back into the wall, scrambling to digistruct his weapon and pointing the shotgun with shaking hands at his attacker.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His “attacker” raised his hands up, though that grin of his still didn’t waver. Timothy wasn’t sure why, but he couldn’t bring himself to shoot. He didn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>look</span>
  </em>
  <span> like a bandit, but… </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh, wow, sorry that I woke you, new friend!” The man gives a short, anxious laugh, “I just couldn’t help staring at your handsome face, hahaha! Trying to place where I know you from, though, mmmm…” He puts a hand to his chin in thought, chewing on the end of what looked like a firecracker.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“St-stay back,” Timothy stuttered, the movement startling him a bit, “I—I’ll shoot!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The man didn’t seem to notice Timothy’s warning, making a gesture of epiphany. “A-ha! You look like Handsome Jack! But isn’t that fella dead? What cha doin’ in my museum?” He finally settled wide and questioning eyes on Timothy, and Tim felt both hot and cold as he realized he had trespassed on this man’s property. By all rights, this guy could have killed him! But he hadn’t? He felt somewhere between embarrassed and terrified. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Timothy lowered his weapon. “Well I – I was just looking for a place to stay and, uh, this place looked fairly abandoned so I thought…” He was growing more uncomfortable by the second with this man’s unblinking stare. “Sorry! I can leave! Just, let me get my stuff!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh no, please stay, new best friend!” He makes that short laugh again, “Dear me, I didn’t even introduce myself!” He holds out a hand, as if for a shake. “I’m Shade, and this is my World of Curiosities!” The hand that he had offered is suddenly now gesturing around them. Timothy felt like he was being swept up in a whirlwind as he’s hauled to his feet. “This is just a little something my grandpappy built and I inherited, but I’m really big on carrying the family tradition, heh-heh. I can give you the grand tour, Mister… Jack…?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“No, no I’m not… I’m not Jack. It’s… kind of a long story. Basically, a long line of mistakes got me this face. Er, I’m Timothy?” Shade was still holding his arm, so Tim shook him off, trying to gain back some personal space. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>However, Shade only managed to usher an arm around him once more to pull him along on his tour. “Alright, Timothy – is it already if I just call you Tim? Heh-heh – it’s time to be amazed by the wonders of my museum!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He paused and the smile on his face fades as he turns to Timothy, brows pinching. “Unless… you don’t want to see the museum… You </span>
  <em>
    <span>were</span>
  </em>
  <span> just staying the night and well…” That short, nervous laugh again. “It would really mean the world to me if you at least toured the place with me. I would hate to see all my grandpappy’s hard work go unappreciated!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Timothy looked at Shade and couldn’t help feeling some pity here. It was obvious that Shade was an extremely lonely man, someone misplaced by the horrors that Pandora produced non-stop. And probably a bit mentally deranged, too. What kind of traumas had Shade been through? Probably just as many colorful experiences as Timothy has had. But Shade hadn’t gone full bandit like some, so there were definitely redeemable qualities here. Shade had survived. Timothy had survived. </span>
  <strike>
    <span>They were both lonely.</span>
  </strike>
  <span> They had that in common.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The tenseness in Tim’s shoulders subsided as he made up his mind. Maybe he could make a friend in Shade, despite any of their… differences.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Yeah… alright, uh, if I go on the tour… is it possible I could get a room? I can pay, I just… don’t have a lot.” Timothy gave a shy smile, not sure how the other would react.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shade looked like he was ready to explode with excitement. “OH GOSH! You want to STAY?? Ha-haha--- heehee—” He could barely contain his laughter, dancing about Tim with a grin on his face. “For you, my friend – you can stay for free! – Haha, wowee, I’ve never had a roomie before!” His eyes are practically sparkling as thoughts of the potentials of this roommate relationship spun through his head.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Looks like it’s gonna be the beginning of a beautiful friendship, Timothy!!” Shade exclaims as he throws an arm around Timothy’s shoulders, grinning like a madman. “Just you, me, and the World of Curiosities!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Timothy just hoped he wouldn’t regret it.</span>
</p>
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